Prayer Letter

One of the big achievements of the last couple of months has been the fabrication of a gas oven to start us off in the orthopaedic workshop while we raise funds for the definitive workshop equipment and building. This has been made possible by Eric, an American missionary who normally lives at G2 hospital. He came back early from his home assignment in order to finish off some projects before his visa ran out. Unfortunately, Americans cannot renew their visas at the moment. He spent a large portion of his month here welding together the oven from local materials, as well as some parts brought over specially from the UK and US.

Another big win has been the addition of a second-hand bench top drill that can be used as small router, also a fundamental piece of equipment for the workshop. This was very kindly donated, along with some other power tools, by a friend of Roger's family who is an orthotist in Scotland. As we were meeting up with Roger's parents in Istanbul, they put in a lot of effort to bring the donated tools part way for us. At the same time, they also carried some components and materials, very generously given to us by the University of Strathclyde, where we trained. We then brought the donations the remainder of the way to Chad. We have been greatly encouraged by people's generosity in helping us start up here at G2. This, alongside the grant from BMS to buy other hand-tools and materials means we are a good step closer to being equipped for the provision of prosthetic and orthotic services to those with disabilities in the community where we're living.

Hopefully, once we sort out a workshop space at G2 hospital and buy in some more materials, we'll be able to start a very basic clinic, making things like moulded custom sandals for people with foot deformities. We still need to source an orthopaedic vacuum pump before we can start on more complex custom made devices, but the pieces of the puzzle are certainly coming together!

October is birthday month for our boys, and being their first birthdays spent in Chad, we tried to make it special for them. Joel had school on his actual birthday but had a party on the Saturday with other families we know here. Mark was on holiday for his so we took him to a local hotel pool and had lunch and ice cream out, as well as a joint birthday party with one of the other G2 residents. Both had classic party games…pass the parcel, musical statues, and pin the tail on the…giraffe for Joel and dog for Mark!

Praise God:

That we have been able to make progress with the workshop equipment, particularly for the gas oven and safe travels for us and our luggage, bringing in much needed equipment and supplies for the prosthetics and orthotics project.

That the roads are easier to travel now that the rainy season is over.

That the boys enjoyed their birthdays despite the distance from family and friends in the UK.

Prayer Requests:

For energy and determination as we continue with this new department start up, particularly in the areas outside of our comfort zone, given our purely clinical background.

Please pray for good partnerships and collaboration for the funding of a building for the P&O department.

Pray for Chad as it tries to support the huge influx of Sudanese refugees that have fled to Chad since civil war broke out in Sudan over 2 years ago. It's a struggle for the already very minimal infrastructure here, and cholera outbreaks have taken the lives of many.

Thank you, all, for the support and encouragement. We are so very grateful and send best wishes to you all from us here in Chad.